I enjoyed this. It had been one of those movies I had heard about but had never gotten around to. There are times when it seems that Matt Damon is such a cold fish (ala The Good Shepherd),that one has trouble getting connected to him. In this film he is really believable as a man who has all the training of a killing machine, but a soft side that bears exploring. The character is put into situations he can't understand but can only react to. He has compassion but little understanding. What an interesting role. If there's a shortcoming, it's that the motivations of the bad folks aren't all that clear. It's still a delight to watch his relationship with his I-only- need-a-ride partner develop. There is a level of subtlety that most films of this type don't have. The car chases are spectacular but, for once, they backed down on the pyrotechnics. I appreciated this.

Hollywood comes up trumps with this engaging spy thriller, based of course on the novel by Robert Ludlum. It's a film that serves to reinforce my belief that all Hollywood thrillers shot in France are top-notch, and it's a film that employs all the modern, stylised tricks of the camera to come up with a winning formula. The story is straightforward enough: an amnesic spy falls in love, suffers numerous assassination attempts and is on the run from the police, as he desperately tries to regain his memories. Matt Damon, taking the title role, gives an engaging and likable performance and in addition proves himself worthy as a lean but powerful man of action.

Speaking of action, the film acquits itself well with some stunning chase sequences – the hunt in the bank is amazing and finishes off with a nicely perilous high-rise scare-show; there's a car chase with a mini that just about equals the ones in RONIN, plus the various fight sequences all employ a super-fast sped-up martial arts style fighting that looks pretty cool to me. Watch out for the bit where a ballpoint pen becomes a lethal weapon, cringeworthy stuff. Technical qualities are excellent and to enhance things further, a great supporting cast all does their best. Franka Potente is attractive and feisty as Bourne's accomplice, Maria; Chris Cooper is excellent as the stressed-out CIA man on Damon's trail; Brian Cox delivers another of those catchy, powerful extended cameo performances, and finally Clive Owen steals his scenes as a tough hit-man, nicknamed The Professor.

THE BOURNE IDENTITY is about as good as you can get for a modern action thriller. The storyline is complex, but gradually revealed piece by piece so that it's relatively simple to follow. Although it lacks the scope and extended time-frame of other recent spy thrillers such as SPY GAME and THE SUM OF ALL FEARS, the low-key approach to the action works nicely and the gorgeous European locations make it look refreshingly different. Intelligent, pulse-pounding and packed with intrigue and excitement – a rare treat in these modern brain-dead blockbuster days of cinema.

Not that there is any bias intended against the spy film genre, far from it. Nor with films that contain a good deal, or a lot, of action. There are some good, very good even, ones out there. There are also however ones that are too derivative, are basically style over substance (a few not even executing the style particularly well) and favour can-see-it-coming "thrills" and "twists" and bombastic action over telling a good story.

What a pleasant surprise that 'The Bourne Identity' turned out to be. Had heard next to nothing but good things about the Bourne films and had been meaning to check them out for a while, while worrying as to whether they'd be my cup of tea or not. 'The Bourne Identity' not only does what it set out to do very well, with lots of fun and intrigue, but it is also a film that has a brain and respects its audience. It clearly knew what it wanted to be and who to aim it at.

Sure, the basic story is not exactly original, occasionally there is a little routine-ness. This doesn't really matter all that much though, because 'The Bourne Identity' succeeded in giving the genre a considerable freshness on the whole. It does lose its way a little towards the end, when things do become a little too cliché and some things could have been explained better and felt less confused. While still doing a good job, Clive Owen did deserve more to do than what he got, a come and go character that disappears too quickly and early.

However, visually 'The Bourne Identity' is very slick and stylish, special effects very wisely kept at minimum. Am not always a fan of the camera technique used here but here it added to the intensity and didn't feel that excessive or abused, certainly didn't look amateurish either. A reasonably dynamic soundtrack and authentic sound quality helps too, as does astute direction that keeps everything moving along with confidence.

'The Bourne Identity' contains a sharp and well written script that provokes thought, with nothing being confused, rambling or cheesy. The story for much of the length is exciting and has a considerable freshness that is really refreshing. The pacing is relentless, while avoiding the traps of being too hectic or being dull, neither of which it ever is. The action is very well choreographed, confidently performed and keeps one on the edge of their seat.

Matt Damon carries the title role with ease, and Franka Potente provides gutsy support, their chemistry to me was believable. Chris Cooper is fun, and while a little too briefly utilised Clive Owen and Brian Cox both do very good jobs.

In summary, surprisingly good and entertaining and a very good start to the Bourne films. 8/10 Bethany Cox